"MINISTERING SPIRITS"
Terms And Descriptions Of Angels
INTRODUCTION
- The subject of angels has certainly become a popular one...
- Bookstores are filled with books dealing with angels
- Popular TV shows and movies depict angels working in our lives
("Highway To Heaven", "Touched By An Angel", "The Preacher's
Wife", "It's A Wonderful Life")
- Angels were an important part of the Jewish religion...
- Angels assisted with the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai - cf.
Deut 33:2; Ps 68:17; Ac 7:53; Ga 3:19
- They appear throughout the history of Israel, coming to Abraham,
Daniel, and many others
- Angels also serve an important role in the Christian faith...
- They are described as "ministering spirits sent forth to minister
for those who will inherit salvation" - He 1:13-14
- They have certainly ministered in the past - cf. Lk 1:11-38
- They will certainly minister at the time of Christ's return - cf.
Mt 13:36-43
- But to what extent do they minister in the present...?
- This is a subject that is prone to much speculation
- It is easy to get caught up in idle myths and fables
- About which we are warned to avoid - cf. 1Ti 1:3-4; 4:7; 6:20;
2Ti 2:16; 4:3-4
-- Yet angels are a Biblical subject, therefore worthy of careful
consideration
[With a desire to be content with what the Bible reveals on the subject
of angels, we begin this study with a look at some terms and
descriptions regarding angels...]
- TERMS USED IN CONNECTION WITH ANGELS
- THE WORD 'ANGEL'...
- The Hebrew word malak (found 103 times in the OT) simply means
"messenger"
- It can refer to a human messenger - 1Ki 19:2
- It is applied to the prophet Haggai - Hag 1:13
- It is applied to a priest - Mal 2:7
- It is applied to both John the Baptist and Jesus in
prophecy - Mal 3:1
- The name of the prophet Malachi comes from the same word
- It can refer to a divine messenger - Gen 28:12
- Supernatural or heavenly beings sent as messengers to men
- Agents who carry out the will of God - ISBE
- The Greek word angelos likewise means "messenger"
- The word occurs 175 times in the NT
- Of men, it is used only 6 times in the NT
- OTHER TERMS APPLIED TO 'ANGELS'...
- Sons of God - God's sons by virtue of His creation - cf. Job
1:6; 38:7
- Holy ones - suggesting they belong to God, 'set apart' for His
purposes - Ps 89:5,7 (NASB, NIV)
- Watcher, watchers - likely referring to angels - cf. Dan 4:13,
17,23
- Host - denoting the armies of heaven, which likely included
angels - cf. 1Sa 17:45
- Archangel - used twice, once in connection with Michael - 1 Th
4:16; Jude 9
- Prince, chief princes, great prince - used in the book of
Daniel - Dan 10:13,21; 12:1
- Paul used terms that may refer to angels - cf. Col 1:16; Ep 1:21; 3:10
- Principalities (archai)
- Powers (exousiai)
- Thrones (thronoi)
- Dominions (kyriotetes)
- Powers (dynamesis)
-- Yet these are sometimes distinguished from angels (Ro 8:38;
1Pe 3:22), and at times described as negative forces (Col 2:15; Ep 6:12)
[It quickly becomes apparent that the Bible has a lot to say about
angels. More about angels can be gleaned from the Bible as we
consider...]
- DESCRIPTIONS OF ANGELS
- THEIR NATURE AND ATTRIBUTES...
- They are spirit beings
- Called "spirits", suggesting they do not have corporeal
bodies - He 1:14
- Though they did reveal themselves at times in the form of
human bodies - Gen 18:3
- They do not function as human beings in such things as
marriage - Mk 12:25
- They are not subject to death - Lk 20:36
- They are created beings
- They are part of the creation that is to praise Jehovah
- Ps 148:1-5
- They were created by Christ, among all other things - Co
1:16
- They are innumerable
- An innumerable company - He 12:22
- John's descriptions suggests their number is countless - Re
5:11
- They are a higher order than man
- Man was created lower than the angels - He 2:6-7
- Angels are not capable of death - Lk 20:36
- They have greater wisdom, though limited - 2Sa 14:20; Mt
24:36
- They have greater power, though it too is limited - Mt 28:2;
Dan 10:13
- They always appeared as men
- Never as women or children, always clothed
- Other than Cherubim and Seraphim> (whose classification as
angels is suspect), they never have wings - though cf.
Re 8:13; 14:6
- Many times they were so disguised as men they were not first
identified as angels - Gen 18:1-2; 19:1; He 13:2
- THEIR CLASSIFICATIONS...
- The archangel, the "great prince"
- Michael is called the archangel - Jude 9; cf. 1Th 4:16
- Michael is called the "great prince", who watched over
Israel - Dan 12:1; cf. Dan 10:21
- Michael is mentioned in Re 12:7
- Some (JWs and others) believe Michael was the pre-incarnate
Christ
- The chief princes
- Of whom Michael was one - Dan 10:13
- Some would include Gabriel in this classification
- The angel sent to explain visions to Daniel - Dan 8:16;
9:21
- Who also made announcements to Zacharias and Mary - Lk
1:19,26
- The princes
- The term applied to angels in the book of Daniel - e.g., Dan
10:13,21
- Also to what appear to be evil angelic forces - cf. Dan 10:13,20-21
- The Angel of the Lord
- An angel who seems to speak as the Lord Himself - e.g., Judg
2:1; Gen 16:10-13
- Leading some to wonder if this was the pre-incarnate Christ
- Cherubim?
- Thought by some to be an order or class of angels, though
others hold them to be a higher class of heavenly beings
than angels
- Whose purpose was to be "proclaimers and protectors of God's
glorious presence, His sovereignty, and His Holiness"
- C. Fred Dickason
- In the Bible...
- They stood guard at the Garden of Eden - Gen 3:24
- Their golden figures covered the mercy seat above the ark
in the tabernacle - Exo 25:17-22
- Their designs graced the walls and veils of the
tabernacle, and later in the temple - Exo 26:1,31; 1 Kin
6:23-35; 7:29,36
- They attended the glory of God in Ezekiel's vision - Ezek
1:1-28; cf. Ezek 10:1-20
- Their description fits those of the four living creatures in
Revelation rather than angels - cf. Re 4:4-6
- Seraphim?
- Six winged creatures attending the Lord in Isaiah's vision
- Isa 6:1-13
- Whose name literally means "burning one", also considered by
many as a higher class than angels
- Their work was to "praise and proclaim the perfect holiness
of God" - Dickason
- Their description is also akin to those of the four living
creatures in Revelation rather than angels - cf. Re 4:8-9
- Satan and his angels
- Many believe that Satan is a fallen angel
- That he is "Lucifer", a name applied to the king of
Babylon - Isa 14:1-12
- That he was among the highest of God's creation, a cherub
whose fall and judgment is applied figuratively to the
king of Tyre - cf. Ezek 28:11-19
- Satan does has his angels, for whom condemnation awaits
- cf. Mt 25:41; Re 20:10
- The doctrine of Satan and his angels (along with demons)
will hopefully be examined in another study
CONCLUSION
- With this brief introduction it should be apparent that...
- The Bible has much to say about angels
- It is easy to speculate about angels
- My hope and prayer is that our future studies will...
- Focus on what the Bible actually reveals
- Avoid the vain speculation that is condemned
In the course of our study, we should never forget the One who deserves
our greatest attention:
"For to which of the angels did He ever say: 'You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You'? And again: 'I will be to Him a Father,
And He shall be to Me a Son'? But when He again brings the
firstborn into the world, He says: 'Let all the angels of God
worship Him.'" (He 1:5-6)
Have we joined the angels in worshipping the Son, through our own faith
and obedience...?